23 - 24 JUNE 2018

THE COMMUNITY & SHREWSBURY TOWN

We’re working with local schools and a food bank to provide community benefit. A percentage of our profits will go directly to local good causes!

Why are we doing this? Let’s be clear from the start about who we are and how we operate. We don’t want to mislead you and we don’t want you to be under any illusions – so here’s a list of things that we’re not: we’re not a charity, we’re not a not-for-profit company and we’re not a community enterprise. For details of the people involved click here.

Good. So the record is straight. But let’s add a few more truths to the mix. We wrote our own remit and at the heart of that is a commitment to providing community benefit. So we are actively pursuing ventures that will help the vulnerable, provide opportunities for local schoolchildren, assist micro food businesses and help people starting out in the food industry.

We’re passionate about the journey from farm to fork; so we’re working with schools in Shropshire to build market gardens on their playing fields. We’re dedicated to helping people from our community who are most in need; so we’re working with local food banks to provide support. We’re serious about helping new businesses; so we operate a bursary scheme for sole traders who otherwise couldn’t exhibit at our event.

Each year we donate up to £1,500 to local schools so that they can build their own gardens. Five schools in and around Shrewsbury have received donations so that children can plant their own vegetables and fruit and learn about the way food is grown. We're determined that youngsters have a better understanding of where their food comes from. This year's beneficiary was Clive School, near Grinshill, which received money from the festival and from festival sponsor Wenlock Spring.Wenlock Spring spokesman Stephen Tuck said: "The festival's education programme has gone from strength to strength and local children are the beneficiaries."They get to learn how to grow food and in some projects the produce has gone straight into their school kitchens. Any left overs are then recycled and turned into compost."

Oh, and one last thing, we’re willing to listen. So if you have new ideas about ways in which we can provide community benefit then please, please, please email them to us. We’re eager to do what we can to help – and we rely on your support to achieve our community goals.

Recycle and Reuse

We’re passionate about environment – and 2018 is no different.

So we’re working hard to develop policies that our event does not have a negative impact on the area in which we live and work. We’re green at heart – like all good farmers, producers and fans of local food. We’re working towards a Leave No Trace programme, where all materials from our festival are recycled and reused, where possible. Our volunteers will also be litter-picking in the Quarry Park once we’ve gone.

We’ve entered a partnership with the town’s biggest waste management organisation, Veolia. It understands our aims and objectives and is working with us to make sure our activities do not have a negative effect. We’re working closely with our refuse collecting and sorting partner, Zero Waste, which is providing services for us so that we can make inroads towards our target. The organisation has provided advice and support so that we can minimise the impact that our event has on the Quarry Park – and on the waste stream. With Zero Waste’s assistance, we’ll make sure we minimise the volume of waste that is not recycled.

We’re also working with Veolia Environmental Services, the waste contractor for Shropshire Council, whose members of staff are volunteering. A spokeswoman for Veolia said: “Veolia is committed to with working with the local community by offering volunteers for local community projects. “Each year Veolia collect thousands of tonnes of materials from residents and send it for recycling and composting. In addition to this, we run five household recycling centres around the county at: Shrewsbury, Oswestry, Craven Arms, Whitchurch, Bridgnorth plus a small recycling facility at Ludlow.” We’re grateful for Veolia’s help. To find out more about the work Veolia do in Shropshire you can visit their website at www.veolia.co.uk/shropshire Meanwhile, we’re keen to encourage people to recycle at home by promoting Shropshire Council’s waste and recycling services. The council offers a composting service making sure people at home get home composting bins and other green products. Composting at home can turn most kitchen waste into a rich compost that will keep your garden – and your veg – blooming year after year. For more details about Shropshire Council’s composting services, go to www.shropshire.getcomposting.com